You Reap What You Sow
by fayamilie
Summary: Betty Cooper hasn't been home in almost 5 years, no one has seen her or heard from her in that time with the exception of her sister and mother. She's finally home, but who is that with her?
1. Chapter 1 Homecoming

Chapter 1 Homecoming

It had been almost five years since Betty Cooper had set foot into Riverdale, the only people she had kept in contact with was her sister Polly and her mother Alice. After she left Riverdale she changed her number, she didn't need people contacting her and asking her "Why she wasn't there?" "Where did you go?" or "is this because of Jughead?". Although it did have a little bit to do with Jughead. He had left her, she went to see him at the bar because she hadn't heard from him in a couple weeks so she went to see where they still stood. To her the memories are still as fresh as the day it happened.

*FLASHBACK*

The last time she seen Jughead was when they were interrupted by the Southside Serpents to give him the leather jacket. Once she had called his name he looked at her like a deer caught in headlights, almost like he had forgotten she had even been there in the first place. She knew how much it meant to him to have somewhere he belonged, these were his father's people so therefor they were his by association and with F.P locked up he would need someone to be there for him. So, she didn't bring up the fact that it had bugged her to see him wear it after saying that they weren't their parents.

Once they seen her they had apologized for the interruption and left. Jug had come back inside and hung up the Serpent jacket in the closet. He had turned to her to speak, no doubt to explain his actions. But Betty interrupted him saying "I understand Juggie. They're your people." He smiled at her in response, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. They spent the night making up for their interruption, but they both knew once school started back up nothing would be the same anymore.

She had tried texting him, but never got any responses. She tried calling, but always got voicemail. Until one day she tried calling and got "I'm sorry the caller you are trying to reach, is no longer available." With that she made up her mind she was going to go see him, consequences be damned. Betty pulled up to the Whyte Worm and got out of the car. She walked in and started asking for Jughead but no one seemed to know where he was, or he told them he didn't want to be bothered.

One man came up to her that reeked of alcohol and grabbed her wrist "Sorry princess he ain't accepting visitors, but you can come home with me if you want company" "Get your hands off of me, I only came to see Jughead if he isn't here then I'm leaving." "Oh, come on ill make it worth your while" He reached to grope her and Betty punched him in the nose and heard a satisfying crack. Smiling to herself she looked around the room and told them if they see him to tell him 'Betty stopped by and that they need to talk its important.' But she never heard from him after that.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

Looking in her backseat she smiled at her son sleeping. "Forsythe, hunny wake up." "Yes, mommy?" "You want to stop for some milkshakes before we go to see Grandma and Aunt Polly. I know this really great milkshake stop called Pop's" Forsythe grinned up at her and said "Yes, please." As Betty pulled into the parking lot she couldn't help but feel like she had stepped back into time, everything about the diner was still the same. As they walked into the diner Betty's blood ran cold there sitting at one of the tables was F.P Jones, Jughead's dad her sons Grandpa.

"Betty?" "Uhm hi Mr. Jones." Forsythe looked at her and this man in front of them and smiled. "GRANDPA!" Betty had never tried to hide any information about Forsythe's father or his side of the family. She showed him photos of all of them and had even took Forsythe to meet Jughead's mother and sister before coming back to Riverdale. F.P looked at the young boy in shock, he looked like a carbon copy of his son. "You want to sit down Betty?" She just smiled and brought Forsythe over to him. "This is Forsythe, Forsythe James Jones."

"You gave him our last name?" "Of course, I did I haven't tried hiding anything from him about who his family is. Nor would I deny him of his name. I took him to see his Grandma and Aunt in Toronto before we came here. It would have been sooner but a lot of things happened and it had to wait." "Why doesn't Jughead know?" She sighed "I tried telling him when I found out, but I never got a response and then be blocked my number from calling or got a new number. I tried showing up to the bar and he wasn't there. I never heard from him, my mother and sister tried getting him to come up to the hospital when I was in labor but all he said was 'she isn't my concern anymore' so maybe you should ask him."

Getting up from the table with her son she looked to F.P and said "We have to be leaving now but I hope we'll be seeing you soon. I'm sorry. I hope we can make up for lost time. I'm just not in any hurry to see Jug." "Well it's a little too late for that." As he pointed to the door where Jughead just walked in at. "I had invited Jug here to have dinner when you pulled in Betty." Jughead looked at Betty then at his dad and then to the child standing next to her and sneered. "Got knocked up and he left ya did he? That why you back in Riverdale after so long Elizabeth?" "JUGHEAD!" F.P yelled at him. Betty just smiled and said "I don't know Jug, did you know I was pregnant when you left me?" She scooped her son up and walked out of the diner to her car, leaving behind a shell shocked Jughead Jones.


	2. Chapter 2 Memory Lane

Chapter 2 Memory Lane

Jughead sat down at the table with his dad completely quiet in thought until F.P interrupted said thoughts. "Why did you shut her out Jug?" "I thought I was protecting her dad. Trouble seemed to follow me around and I didn't want her mixed in with that, especially after the whole locker ordeal. I thought I was doing right by her." F.P sighed "Look where that got you kid. You have a son you didn't even know about because you wouldn't explain to her what was going on in that head of yours. You need to do right by her and get to know your kid. You owe them both that much Jug." F.P responded as he got up from the table leaving Jughead to his thoughts.

 ***FLASHBACK***

After Jug had accepted the leather Serpent jacket he had secluded himself from his friends, and Betty. He knew it was wrong, but he wanted to protect them and as long as he was around them that wouldn't happen. He seen the calls and texts from all his friends, and then eventually it was only Betty trying to contact him. He figured if he changed his number then she would stop trying but this was Betty Cooper they were talking about. He found out just how determined she was when she stepped into the Whyte Worm a few days later.

She looked radiant, skin glowing or maybe it was just the bar lighting or even the fact that he hadn't seen her in so long. She always looked like a goddess to him, but he couldn't lie to himself and say that he didn't see the bags under her eyes or that she had lost weight since they last seen each other. He felt the guilt clench in his chest of how his actions, his reclusion had done to her. But he had to protect her, even if it was from afar. He heard her asking for him, about his whereabouts, where she could find him if he wasn't there again the guilt knawed at him as he could hear the pain in her voice.

He knew she didn't understand why he was doing this, but he hoped in time she would understand. He seen one of the Serpents walk up to Betty and watched their exchange. He watched as he grabbed her wrist, at that point he couldn't hear anything of what was said. All he seen was red at another man grabbing what was his, not as a possession because Betty could never be kept. It was one of the many things he loved about her, the spirit she had even while the world around her tried to damper it and conform it. The next thing Jughead knew there was a resounding crack in the bar that caused the whole room to go quiet.

Looking up he seen Betty pull her fist back with blood covering her knuckles. He seen the smile she held at causing the pain in the man who no doubt deserved it. He seen dark Betty slowing rearing her head. He heard her say how she needed to speak with him and that it was important. But to Jughead the most important thing was keeping her safe so he kept his distance. He didn't hear from Betty after that, the next time he heard from the Coopers' was when Alice had told him that Betty was in the hospital.

Seeing Alice walk into the Whyte Worm was quite a surprise, considering it had been about seven months since he had seen Betty. He was glad she finally gave up because it had made it a little bit easier. She was out of sight, but still not quite out of mind. He doubted she would ever be out of his mind, but the one thing he knew was that he was bad news for her and would only bring her trouble in the long run. "Jughead, we need to speak. It's about Betty." Alice spoke as she sat down at the table directly across from him.

While his stomach turned as the worsts thoughts came to his mind, after all what other reason could Alice have for stepping into the bar besides bad news. "What about her?" Jughead managed to maintain a calm exterior. "She's in the hospital." Was Alice's grim response. While he had wanted to ask a million questions he controlled himself, he hadn't wanted to show that he still cared. "Is she alright?" "Under the circumstances." Was her cryptic response. "But you need to be there for her. You'll regret it if you don't, trust me on that."

"She's no longer my concern. She's got her friends and you guys to watch out for her. I washed my hands of her a long time ago. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm very busy." Alice had gotten up from the table with a straight face but you could see the disappointment in her eyes. In herself, or in him he wasn't quite sure. "Don't say I didn't warn you. It's on your conscious not mine. My daughter needs me." Shaking her head, she walked out of the bar.

He had seen Polly in town three months after the exchange with Mrs. Cooper, her twins with her they both had the signature Blossom hair. He had heard Betty had left town but no one knew why, he assumed it was for a fresh start. As Polly made eye contact with him she had that same disappointed look that Alice had their last encounter. One of her twins pipped up "Hey mommy isn't that-" "Not now Jace. We don't talk about that." As she pulled the twins out of the store. That was the last he ever heard from the Cooper family again.


	3. Chapter 3 Family

Chapter 3 Family

Betty pulled up to Polly's apartment, she wasn't supposed to see her mother until later anyways. Polly was recently engaged to Reggie and were currently living together after their wedding they were going to be looking for their forever home. Forsythe was excited to see his Aunt Polly and two cousins Jace and Jade. While the kids had Jason's hair they had Polly's features. Betty hadn't seen them in a while, after her son had gotten ill she didn't want to risk taking him anywhere or having anyone come to them. Betty had almost lost her job because she didn't want to leave him.

She got out of the car and gotten Fors out of the car Polly had stepped outside with a concerned look on her face. "What's up Polls?" "Archie and Veronica are here. I didn't know if you wanted to see them so I figured I'd give you a fair warning first." "Well I already ran into Jug and F.P at Pop's so why not." Betty shrugged and walked into the apartment. Meanwhile Polly was gaping behind her. As soon as the door was opened Fors ran to Reggie. "Uncle Reg!" Reggie chuckled and picked him up, "Hey little man, where's your mommy?" "Right here Reg." Betty laughed coming in the door, and immediately caught eyes with Archie.

"Betty?!" Veronica screamed getting up from the couch to hug her best friend that she hadn't seen since high school. While Archie couldn't stop staring at her son, she knew he seen the similarities after all he had been friends with Jug since they were little kids. "Is that why you left Betty?" Finally looking away from Fors to stare directly at her. "Yes, it is Arch. Guys meet my son Forsythe. Fors this is your Aunt Ronnie, and Uncle Archie. They were my best friends growing up in Riverdale." Forsythe came up to Archie and stare at him with an inquisitive look that could rival Jugheads. "You're the one who lived next door to my mommy and you were best friends with my daddy right?"

Archie laughed "Yeah little man. How old are you?" "I'll be five soon!" Fors exclaimed with joy. "Betty can I talk to you really quick?" "Sure Arch." Once they were out of hearing range Archie turned to Betty. "Does he know yet?" "Well he actually found out right before I came here. I stopped at Pop's to get him a milkshake and ran into F.P and Jughead walked in as I was about to leave." After a pause, she continued "We shared some words." Betty said with a frown. "Oh boy, what did he say?" "He asked me 'if I got knocked up and left and if that was why I was back in Riverdale.'" Archie groaned at his friends' stupidity, anyone who knew Jug could tell this was his kid.

"So, he doesn't know about why your back, about your mom I mean?" "What do you think Arch? He hasn't had anything to do with my family since he left me. Besides you know my mother doesn't want to be all over the news. Only friends and family know." Arch shrugged "Well he's technically family." Betty glared at him and Archie held up his hands in surrender. "Sorry. So, what are you going to do?" "Well I still have to talk to Fors, but I'm thinking about coming back to Riverdale for good. My family is here and after everything my mom did for me when I was pregnant I think it's only fair that I help her now." While Alice was horrible to her girls growing up trying to keep up a perfect image she tried to make up for it once Betty had gotten pregnant. She had failed Polly and she didn't want to fail Betty too.

"Fors, it's time to go see Grandma Alice." He groaned complaining about he was having fun with his cousins. "I can watch him if you want while you go see mom." Polly offered. "Yeah sure Polls. Thanks." Betty gave Fors a hug and kiss and walked out with Archie and Veronica. "You'll tell us if you need anything right?" Ronnie asked. "Of course, V. Don't worry I'm not going anywhere. Riverdale is my home, it just took me a bit to realize it." Betty smiled and got into her car towards her old childhood home.

Once she pulled up she could help the nostalgia that swept over here, while she had many bad memories growing up in this house she had more good memories. Especially with Jughead. There he was again. A constant reminder in the town, he was everywhere and nowhere all at the same time. Sighing she got out of the car, and walked up to the door unlocked it and walked in. "Mom, I'm home!" Betty yelled at the entrance. 'No response, hmm.' She walked up the stairs to find her mother sleeping in bed. "Mom? Mom wake up. It's Betty." But she didn't wake. She wouldn't wake up. Couldn't wake up. Betty fell to the floor dialing 911.

Jughead was heading to the one place he knew she would be, her mothers. But as soon as he turned on to her road all he could see were flashing ambulance lights. He pulled over and ran up to see a stretcher pulling out a body bag. He was looking for Betty and seen her being consoled by Veronica and Archie talking to Sherriff Keller. He chose to walk up to Archie instead.

"Hey." "Hey Arch. What happened?" "It's her mother Jug. She's dead." "What?" "She had cancer." "That's why she's back in Riverdale?" Archie nodded. 'Fuck. I was such an ass. I made a jab at her being a single when she came back because her mother was dying.' "Where's Mr. Cooper?" "He left when he found out Betty was pregnant. Said he couldn't handle both his daughters being a disappointment." He looked over to Betty and found she was looking straight at him. "Go talk to her. You always understood more than any of us ever could." Archie encouraged him.


	4. Chapter 4 Now or Never

Chapter 4 Now or Never

Veronica glared at him as he started walking up. "I swear Jones you hurt her again, and I'll kill you." Walking past him to go to Archie. He looked at Betty and then to her hands. Some things never change it seemed. "Can I sit Betts?" "I don't own the sidewalk Jug." She replied sarcastically. "I'm so sorry. About everything. About leaving, about you having to go through your pregnancy alone, about your mother. I'd like to be there for you now if you'll let me." She stared down into her lap "I don't know Jug. I'm not sure I would pull through if you left a second time."

"Hey, breathe Betts." Gripping her hands trying to keep her from digging in farther. He could already see the blood. She didn't pull away so he assumed that was a good sign. She wouldn't look at him and he wasn't sure if she didn't want him to see her cry or if it was because she was still upset with him. "I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, but you don't need to go through this alone. You've already done so much on your own." She nodded and leaned her head on his shoulder. "I going to go call my dad, I'll be right back ok?" Again, she just nodded not sure she could trust her voice.

After the fifth ring F.P picked up "Hey kid. What's up?" "Dad, its Bettys mom. She's died. Betty found her." Minutes ticked by before F.P responded. "Jug, that's not a joke." He sounded irritated and disappointed. "I'm not joking. She had cancer dad. That's why she came back. She went to go see her mom and found her in her bed." "Shit. Is she ok? Has anyone contacted Hal?" "Hal hasn't been around since Betty found out she was pregnant" Jughead said pinching the bridge of his nose. "I'll be there 15 minutes top." He hung up. No matter what happened between Betty and his son, he still seen Betty as a daughter. Besides Serpents look after their own.

True to his word F.P pulled up to the Cooper house 15 minutes later. He slowly walked up to Betty and engulfed her in a hug, that's when Betty lost control and started hysterically crying. There was still so much Betty didn't understand, but she knew she could turn to her friends for help bonds like theirs just don't disappear no matter how much time it's been since they've had contact. "Betty?" Jughead called her name and crouched down in front of her. "Do you and For want to come stay with me? I have a two-bedroom apartment." "Yes. Thank you Juggie." "Any time Juliet."

"You ready to go Betts?" He grabbed her keys and once they got into the car she told him the directions to get to Polly's. Somewhere along the drive Betty fell asleep. "Betts. We're here." "Do you mind waiting in the car? I need to talk to Polly and then explain the situation to For." "Of course. I'll be here." Once she reached the door she stopped to take a calming breathe and knocked. Polly answered the door. "Hey. Betty?" "It's mom Polly. She passed away." "You found her when you went there? Oh god, I'm so sorry I didn't go with you." "It's okay, where's For?" "He's sleeping."

"Jughead offered to let me and him stay at his apartment. I wanted to talk to him beforehand." "Mommy?" A sleepy Forsythe stepped out from the room to look at Betty. "We're going to stay with Daddy?" "Only if you want to sweetie." "I'd like that." He responded with the biggest smile. "Listen baby, we need to talk." "I already heard about Grandma. At least she isn't in pain anymore." Betty laughed trying to hold back crying. This kid was too smart for his own good sometimes. Betty walked outside carrying For and Jughead got out of the car to take him and put him in the car for her. "Ready?" Betty nodded her head in conformation.


End file.
